Longfin African conger

Conger cinereus

Fish
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth0–10 m
Water temperature18–30 °C
Best monthsApril, May, and October
How commonOccasional

Photo credit: (c) Philippe Bourjon, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist

About this species

The longfin African conger is an eel of the family Congridae known by several common names, including the blacklip conger, moustache conger, and ashen conger. Its range covers much of the Indo-West Pacific, from the Red Sea and East Africa, to the Marquesas and Easter Islands. It is generally found in shallow coastal and reef habitats, and is known for its nocturnal, often reclusive behavior. The population found in Hawai'i was originally classified as a subspecies, but was later considered its own species.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Longfin African conger”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 35 records
February: 27 records
March: 37 records
April: 91 records
May: 69 records
June: 34 records
July: 31 records
August: 41 records
September: 45 records
October: 59 records
November: 55 records
December: 31 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 0–10 m · Deepest record: 661.5 m

0–10 m: 203 records
10–20 m: 13 records
20–30 m: 4 records
30–40 m: 3 records
40–50 m: 0 records
50–60 m: 0 records
60–70 m: 1 records
70–80 m: 0 records
80–90 m: 1 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 1 records
110+ m: 5 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 18–30 °C

18–20 °C: 3 records
20–22 °C: 16 records
22–24 °C: 33 records
24–26 °C: 90 records
26–28 °C: 204 records
28–30 °C: 143 records

Photos

Names and classification

English: Longfin African conger, Mustache conger, Ash-colored Conger Eel, Ashen Conger-eel, Ashen Conger Eel, Black-edged Conger, Blackedged Conger, Black-edged Conger, Longfin African conger, Blacklip Conger, Conger Eel, Indian Conger Eel, longfin African conger, longfin conger, Moustache Conger, mustache conger, Mustache Conger Eel, Mustache Eel, White Eel

Names in 4 more languages

Spanish: Congrio Aletón Áfricano, congrio de aleta larga
French: Anguille Congre, Congre à moustache, Congre cendré, congre oiro, Congre oiro, Congre à moustache
Japanese: Kirianago, キリアナゴ
Simplified Chinese: 沙鰻, 海鰻, 灰康吉鰻, 灰康吉鳗, 灰糯鰻, 白鰻, 穴子鰻, 糯米鰻, 臭腥鰻

Other scientific names: Conger altipinnis, Conger flavipinnatus

Similar species

Largehead Conger
Conger macrocephalus
Kanazawa's Conger
Conger philippinus
Black spotted garden eel
Heteroconger hassi
Darkfin Conger
Ariosoma anago
Ariosoma obud
Ariosoma sazonovi

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
878 open-data records from 1830 to 2023.
Species data updated October 26, 2026.

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